


Old Habits Die Hard

by Emachinescat



Category: Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, Merlin (TV)
Genre: Friendship, Gen, Humor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-22
Updated: 2016-09-22
Packaged: 2018-08-16 19:00:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 449
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8113828
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Emachinescat/pseuds/Emachinescat
Summary: Merlin's been busy while waiting for Arthur's return. Reincarnation fic.





	

Merlin was eagerly awaiting Arthur when he returned. "Hello again, Arthur," he said, his grin blinding. "What took you so long?"

Arthur snorted. "What do you think, _Mer_ lin?"

They laughed; Arthur punched Merlin in the shoulder.

"What have you been doing all this time?" Arthur asked curiously. "I mean, while I was gone?"

Merlin clasped his hands sagely, and said all in one breath, "I stumbled upon a new land. I discovered a new destiny as Dragonborn. I learned the magic of shouting. I became the savior of Tamriel, the arch mage of a magic college, a thane of my own lakeside estate. I married, adopted two adorable little girls. I fought giants and dragons and witches and Falmer and vampires and bandits and trolls and dwarven mechanisms…" He gulped in a large breath, "Oh, and I became a werewolf."

Arthur stared at him, eyebrows disappearing into his hairline. "Oh," he said mildly, "is that all?"

"I'm a fast worker," Merlin replied.

"Well," said Arthur, plopping himself down on the sofa next to Merlin, "that's all well and good, but it's my turn now." He set the plastic bag of assorted junk foods on the coffee table, then propped his sneaker-clad feet beside it.

Merlin shook his head, maintaining a white-knuckled grip on the PS4 controller. "I'm in the middle of a quest," he protested.

" _Mer_ lin, you idiot," Arthur growled dangerously, "I spent the last hour and a half in line at a packed supermarket, feeding _your_ sweet tooth." He grabbed a chocolate bar out of the bag and all but crammed it in his mouth. "Besides," he said over the gooey chocolate and caramel, "I was in the middle of a quest too – damn Dwemer. But _I_ stopped in the middle to go get snacks and you hi-jacked the game!"

Merlin scoffed. "You were the one who wanted snacks, Arthur," he reminded his friend. "And just let me finish this Dawnguard quest and I'll let you play."

His eyes flicked back to the screen.

Arthur rolled his eyes. "That's it." And the former king of Camelot and the greatest warlock of all time began to squabble over Skyrim.

It was over quickly. Merlin's eyes flashed, and there was an invisible barrier between his side of the couch and Arthur's. Arthur, unable to wrest the game controller from Merlin's hands, glared daggers at the warlock, who cheerily slayed a bevy of Volkair vampires.

"You know," he said as his fingers danced over the controls, "this is just like old times, Arthur. Quests, danger, magic, swordfights, you stuffing your face, us bantering…"

"Yeah, well," Arthur said grumpily, impatiently awaiting his go at the game, "old habits die hard."

**Author's Note:**

> BONUS: When I play Skyrim, I collect cabbages. When I kill someone, I leave a cabbage on their corpse. I call myself the Cabbage Patch Killer.
> 
> That is all.


End file.
